Digital literacy and privacy rights in the ICT era: A documentary analysis from the legal and ethical perspective of information management
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.36825/RITI.13.29.007Keywords:
Digital Literacy, Privacy, Digital Rights, ICT, Informational EthicsAbstract
This study analyzes the relationship between digital literacy and protecting privacy rights using ICTs from a legal and ethical perspective. The research question focused on understanding how digital literacy contributes to the ethical and legal use of ICTs and helps prevent the violation of informational rights. A qualitative, exploratory approach was employed, using a documentary and cross-sectional design. The review covered 21 empirical studies published between 2021 and 2025, selected through rigorous criteria and analyzed thematically. The findings indicate that higher levels of critical digital literacy are associated with better practices in the protection of personal data across contexts such as education, healthcare, library management, and digital commerce. Additionally, digital literacy was found to support the exercise of informational rights and to help address risks related to surveillance, manipulation, and data misuse. The study concludes that digital literacy should be addressed as a key civic competence to promote responsible ICT use and safeguard privacy in the digital society. It advances understanding of the phenomenon and suggests integrative approaches across education, law, and technology.
References
Martínez-Bravo, M. C., Sádaba Chalezquer, C., Serrano-Puche, J. (2022). Dimensions of digital literacy in the 21st century competency frameworks. Sustainability, 14 (3), 1-13. https://doi.org/10.3390/su14031867
Pangrazio, L., Sefton-Green, J. (2021). Digital rights, digital citizenship and digital literacy: What’s the difference? Journal of New Approaches in Educational Research, 10 (1), 15–27. https://doi.org/10.7821/naer.2021.1.616
Bartsch, M., Dienlin, T. (2016). Control your Facebook: An analysis of online privacy literacy. Computers in Human Behavior, 56, 147–154. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2015.11.022
Masur, P. K. (2020). How online privacy literacy supports self-data protection and self-determination in the age of information. Media and Communication, 8 (2), 258–269. https://doi.org/10.17645/mac.v8i2.2855
McDougall, J., Brites, M.-J., Couto, M.-J., Lucas, C. (2019). Digital literacy, fake news and education. Cultura y Educación, 31 (2), 203–212. https://doi.org/10.1080/11356405.2019.1603632
Silamut, A., Petsangsri, S. (2020). Self-directed learning with knowledge management model to enhance digital literacy abilities. Educational and Information Technologies, 25, 5503–5523. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10639-020-10187-3
Le Monde (2011). Street View : la CNIL inflige une amende à Google. https://www.lemonde.fr/technologies/article/2011/03/21/street-view-la-cnil-inflige-une-amende-a-google_1496083_651865.html
Procuraduría Federal del Consumidor [Profeco]. (2021). La Ley Olimpia y el combate a la violencia digital. https://www.gob.mx/profeco/es/articulos/la-ley-olimpia-y-el-combate-a-la-violencia-digital
Tinmaz, H., Lee, Y. T., Fanea-Ivanovici, M., Baber, H. (2022). A systematic review on digital literacy. Smart Learning Environments, 9 (21), 1-18. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40561-022-00204-y
Stovpets, O., Borinshtein, Y., Yershova-Babenko, I., Kozobrodova, D., Madi, H., Honcharova, O. (2023). Digital technologies and human rights: Challenges and opportunities. Amazonia Investiga, 12 (72), 17–30. https://doi.org/10.34069/AI/2023.72.12.2
Judijanto, L., Amin, A. (2025). The role of data supervisors in the implementation of privacy policies: A literature review. Jurnal Komunikasi, 3 (3), 139–146. https://jkm.my.id/index.php/komunikasi/article/view/131
Reddy, P., Sharma, B., Chaudhary, K. (2021). Digital literacy: A review in the South Pacific. Journal of Computing in Higher Education, 34, 83-108. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12528-021-09280-4
Syahwami, S., Hamirul, H. (2024). The erosion of privacy in the digital age: A constitutional challenge in Indonesia. Enigma in Law, 2 (2), 75–89. https://doi.org/10.61996/law.v2i2.56
Khanlou, N., Khan, A., Vazquez, L. M., Zangeneh, M. (2021). Digital literacy, access to technology and inclusion for young adults with developmental disabilities. Journal of Developmental and Physical Disabilities, 33 (1), 1-25. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10882-020-09738-w
Meherali, S., Rahim, K. A., Campbell, S., Lassi, Z. S. (2021). Does digital literacy empower adolescent girls in low- and middle-income countries: A systematic review. Frontiers in Public Health, 9, 1-14. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpubh.2021.761394
Gallego-Arrufat, M. J., García-Martínez, I., Romero-López, M. A., Torres-Hernández, N. (2024). Digital rights and responsibility in education: A scoping review. Education Policy Analysis Archives, 32 (3), 1-27. https://doi.org/10.14507/epaa.32.7899
Rocha Estrada, F. J., George-Reyes, C. E., Glasserman-Morales, L. D. (2022). Security as an emerging dimension of digital literacy for education: A systematic literature review. Journal of E-Learning and Knowledge Society, 18 (2), 22–33. https://www.je-lks.org/ojs/index.php/Je-LKS_EN/article/view/1135440
Umami, N., Amelia, S., Sulistiani, H. (2023). Digital economy opportunities and challenges in the era of connection. 4th International Conference on Information Technology and Security. Universitas Teknokrat Indonesia, Malang. https://jurnal.stiki.ac.id/IC-ITECHS/article/download/1083/668/
Adams, K. (2025). Surveillance and Privacy: How Can the Framework Support Privacy Literacy? College & Research Libraries News, 86 (1), 7. https://doi.org/10.5860/crln.86.1.7
Powell, D., Asad, L., Zavaglia, E., Ferrari, M. (2025). Promoting digital health data literacy: The Datum Project. JMIR Formative Research., 9, 1-6. https://doi.org/10.2196/60832
Bajnaid, W., Aljasir, S. (2025). Does Online Privacy Literacy Affect Privacy Protection Behaviour? A Mixed-Methods Study of Digital Media Users in the MENA Region. Journalism and media, 6 (1), 1-17. https://doi.org/10.3390/journalmedia6010008
Rozak, A., Karman, K. (2024). Digital Literacy: Understanding Norms and Ethics In yhe Online Realm. International Journal of Humanities, Social Sciences and Business, 4 (2), 36-42. https://injoqast.net/index.php/JOSSS/article/view/29
Prasetyo, B.. Handayani, I. G., Sulistiyono, A. (2025). Data protection laws in Indonesia: Navigating privacy in the digital age. SIDE: Scientifict Development Journal, 2 (1), 9–16. https://ojs.arbain.co.id/index.php/side/article/view/115
Kapadiya, H., Kapadiya, N. K. (2024). User Privacy in Digital Libraries: Challenges, Implications and Strategies for Safeguarding Information. Indian Journal of Library Science Research & Information Technology, 1 (2), 37-45. https://www.bmsgroup.in/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/INDIAN-JOURNAL-VOL1-N-2-P-4.pdf
Ocks, Y., Salubi, O. G. (2024). Privacy Paradox in Industry 4.0: A review of library information services and data protection. South African Journal of Information Management, 26 (1), 1-11. https://hdl.handle.net/10520/ejc-info_v26_n1_a1845
Ismiatun, I., Sukartini, E. (2024). Library digital transformation: Legal and ethical analysis of librarians' use of AI to improve scientific literacy. Knowledge Garden: International Journal of Library Studies, 2 (2), 23-41. http://dx.doi.org/10.21776/ub.knowledgegarden.2024.2.2.26
Eltemasi, M. (2024). Exploring the intersection of information literacy and rights in the information age. Global Knowledge, Memory and Communication, 1-20. https://doi.org/10.1108/GKMC-02-2024-0064
Croft, N. (2024). Exploring the connection between digital literacy and data privacy and security practices among early childhood professionals in British Columbia [Mater Thesis]. Royal Roads University.
Fernandes Tino, C., Becke, A. C., Pereira, B., Correa, L R., Soares, M. L., Nascimiento-e-Silva, D. (2024). Ethical, legal, and information management aspects in the context of patient safety. Revista de Gestão e Secretariado, 15 (1), 167–179. https://doi.org/10.7769/gesec.v15i1.3346
Aydınlar, A., Mavi, A., Kütükçü, E., Kırımlı, E. E., Alış, D., Akın, A., Altıntaş, L. (2024). Awareness and level of digital literacy among students receiving health-based education. BMC Medical Education, 24 (38), 1-13. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12909-024-05025-w
Lee, H. (2023). What privacy? Online privacy culture and the role of libraries in digital information literacy. En D. Fitzgerarld Quintel, A. York (Eds.) Privacy and Safety in online learning. https://mtsu.pressbooks.pub/privacyandsafetyinonlinelearning/chapter/what-privacy-online-privacy-culture-and-the-role-of-libraries-in-digital-information-literacy/
Prince, C., Omrani, N., Schiavone, F. (2023). Online privacy literacy and users’ information privacy empowerment: The case of GDPR in Europe. Information Technology & People, 37 (8), 1–24. https://doi.org/10.9988/ejdps.2023.06102
Skrinjaric, B. (2023). Internet skills and range of activities: influence of internet literacy on resilience to online privacy violation. 94th International Scientific Conference on Economic and Social Development, Dubrovnik. https://repozitorij.efst.unist.hr/islandora/object/efst%3A6339/datastream/FILE0/view#page=30
Elrayah, M., Jamil, S. (2023). Impact of digital literacy and online privacy concerns on cybersecurity behaviour: The moderating role of cybersecurity awareness. International Journal of Cyber Criminology, 17 (2), 166–187. https://cybercrimejournal.com/menuscript/index.php/cybercrimejournal/article/view/205
Made, R. N., Nyoman, N. I. (2023). Digital literacy, privacy violation experience and the impact on online purchase intention. RJOAS: Russian Journal of Agricultural and Socio-Economic Sciences, 3 (135), 35–41. https://doi.org/10.18551/rjoas.2023-03.05
Fajarwati, N. K., Susilawati, E., Fitrianti, R., Handayani, P., Zulfikar, M. (2023). Digital literacy and communication privacy in cybermedia era. The International Journal of Politics and Sociology Research, 11 (2), 274-279. https://www.ijobsor.pelnus.ac.id/index.php/ijopsor/article/view/153
Toha Tohara, A. J., Shuhidan, S. M., Saiful Bahy, F. D., Nordin, M. N. (2021). Exploring Digital Literacy Strategies for Students with Special Educational Needs in the Digital Age. Turkish Journal of Computer and Mathematics Education, 12 (2), 3345-3358.
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2025 Revista de Investigación en Tecnologías de la Información
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
Esta revista proporciona un acceso abierto a su contenido, basado en el principio de que ofrecer al público un acceso libre a las investigaciones ayuda a un mayor intercambio global del conocimiento.
El texto publicado en la Revista de Investigación en Tecnologías de la Información (RITI) se distribuye bajo la licencia Creative Commons (CC BY-NC
), que permite a terceros utilizar lo publicado citando a los autores del trabajo y a RITI, pero sin hacer uso del material con propósitos comerciales.
